[Effect of congenital infection by Trypanosoma cruzi on intrauterine development and the fetal-neonatal immune response].

In congenital infection by Trypanosoma cruzi, morbidity and mortality vary from asymptomatic cases to severe clinical forms of the disease. It has been found that there is no specific clinical profile in newborns infected by T. cruzi, since during intrauterine development diverse pathological changes take place, causing alterations in the serological and parasitological profiles. Some intrinsic factors of the host, such as: the placental barrier and the ability of both, mother and fetus, to develop a specific immune response to control parasite multiplication, could be involved in such differences. Another possibility includes the genetic polymorphism of T. cruzi, since it is considered that strains of greater virulence can cross the placenta more easily and are more pathogenic to the fetus and/or the neonate.